The present invention is directed to a toilet seat hinge, and in particular to a hinge that employs symmetrical hinge leafs and a double post hinge base for ease of manufacturing and use.
In the prior art, various toilet seat hinges have been proposed as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,314,382 and 4,398,307, to Ginsburg et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,262 to Rosen, U.S. Pat. No. 4,391,001 to Harrison, U.S. Pat. No. 3,665,552 to Toldo.
However, many of these hinges are not versatile and are complicated to manufacture. Further, many prior art designs are conducive to hinge loosening due to relative movement between the toilet seat ring and seat cover. Consequently, there exists a need for improved toilet seat hinges. The present invention solves this need by providing a toilet seat hinge that uses a base that is adapted for both molded plastic seat rings and covers and seat rings and covers requiring leafs, and better secures both types of seat assemblies in place.
It is a first object of the present invention to provide an improved toilet seat assembly that employs a unique hinge base.
Another object of the invention is to provide a toilet seat hinge assembly that employs symmetrical leafs, particularly in combination with the inventive hinge base.
Still another object of the invention is a toilet seat hinge base that can be used with molded plastic seats as well as wooden and soft touch seats.
One further object of the invention is a method of using the hinge base with either symmetrical leafs or molded seat components that interface with the hinge to form the seat assembly
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as a description thereof proceeds.
In satisfaction of the foregoing objects and advantages, one aspect of the present invention is an improvement in toilet seat hinges that employs a hinge base and a pair of hinge leafs for toilet seat attachment. According to this aspect, each leaf is made with essentially the same shape so that the leafs can be used interchangeably for attaching a toilet seat ring and cover to the base.
Each leaf has an attachment portion adapted for connecting to either the seat ring or the seat cover, and a pivot arm for connecting to the hinge base. The attachment portion can have one or more openings for connection to the seat ring or cover. Each pivot arm also has an opening to link with the hinge base. One preferred shape of the attachment portion is a trapezoidal one.
The hinge base has a pair of upstanding posts, each with a through opening at an end thereof. The through opening is sized to receive a connecting pin which extends through the through openings in the posts of the hinge base, and an opening in the pivot arm of each leaf.
The invention also includes a toilet seat assembly that comprises a pair of hinge assemblies, a toilet seat cover, and a toilet seat ring. The attachment portions of the leafs are secured to the seat ring and seat cover, and the pivot arms of each pair of leafs are positioned between the posts of respective hinge bases to form the assembly.
In another aspect of the invention, the hinge base can be employed with seat rings and seat covers that come molded with attachment tabs. The attachment tabs take the place of the pivot arms of the leafs such that the seat cover and seat ring can directly link to the hinge base to form the toilet seat assembly.
In yet another aspect of the invention, a method of using the hinge base is disclosed, wherein the hinge base is linked to the tabs of a seat ring and seat cover to form a toilet seat assembly using a connecting pin with each hinge base. Alternatively, each hinge base can link to a pair of leafs using a connection pin, wherein the leafs are attached to a seat cover and seat lid to form the seat assembly.